Forbidden City Private Walking Tour with Optional Sights

Highlights

Inclusions

Itinerary

1. Depart at your own hotel or meet at the specific area called the Lash Tea house at Qianmen Branch near the Tian'anmen Square and walk to the Tian’anmen Square (after all the security check) with our certificated Tour Guide. You are going to see the ancient Qianmen Gate, the Monument to the People’s heroes and the Great Hall of the people from outside and your tour guide will share with you the history and stories behind all the mentioned architectures.

   45 min

2. We’ll spend 2 hours wandering around this amazing example of Imperial architecture and learning about the history of the palace. There is another option: Booking entrance ticket with us. Please bring your valid passport to visit and go to the spot on your own. Forbidden City was the imperial palace from the Ming and Qing Dynasties. For around 500 years , it served as the home of emperors and their households, as well as the ceremonial and political center of Chinese government The tour route : Forbidden City is divided into two parts. The southern section, or the Outer Court was where the emperor exercised his supreme power over the nation. The northern section, or the Inner Court was where he lived with his royal family. You can take the central route or East Route or West Route depending your own interests or even visiting the Treasure house on the East route. After the tour, taking the public transportation back to your hotel on your own.

   2 hAdmission included

3. This is option that has the tour with Forbidden city. & Temple of Heaven. After you finish the Forbidden you can continue go with our tour guide to take a didi or subway from the Forbidden city to the Temple of Heaven which used to be a place for worshiping for the God of Heaven in the Ming & Qing Dynasty. Nowadays it turns to a huge park where the locals use the grand space to do some Taiji or practice and you will see amazing ancient architectures and also understand how the emperors used to worship their ancestors and all the Gods.

   1 hAdmission included

Cancellation

Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the experience starts, for a full refund.

Reviews

Ratings come from 482 reviews collected by our booking partner. They are travellers' own words, in the order they were written — never reordered to flatter the experience.

Showing reviews written in English.

• 5Great tour, definitely recommend!

  I definitely recommend this tour! My guide Cactus/Xian was great, very knowledgeable and helpful. She picked me up at my hotel, knew how to best avoid lines, and even added an extra stop for free since it was my birthday!

  brianhF4248VXSeptember 2026via Tripadvisor

• 5Amazing tour in Beijing with my friends

  Just a week ago me and my friends were on a tour in Beijing organized by Catherine Lu Tours and this was an amazing experience. I have to say huge thank you to our guide Xi Xi. She made us feel so comfortable during our two-day trip. She knows all the spots for cool pictures and she is a very skilled photographer. She provided us with all historical information and fun facts about the places we visited. We didn’t have a lot of time considering how much you want to see when in Beijing but we took the most of every second. Overall organization of the tour is 10 out of 10 - the pick up, the cars, the drivers, the choice of the restaurant, the schedule, the route. I can say nothing but thank you for this amazing experience, we really had time of our lives there!

  nino4ka_fominykhSeptember 2026via Tripadvisor

• 5A wonderful day trip with Xixi! Highly recommended!

  Excellent day trip with Xixi! She was very knowledgeable and helpful in giving us all the information about the trip and went above and beyond in making this a memorable and informative trip. Thank you for a wonderful day!! Highly recommended!

  447ghassannSeptember 2026via Tripadvisor

• 5Excellent Tour

  We had a great day and would highly recommend this trip. Cindy was an excellent guide who provided a large amount of very useful and interesting information. 5 stars.

  Mobile57409554832September 2026via Tripadvisor

• 5Private solo tour - great experience

  Great experience. Michael was really helpful, well-versed, informative and kind. I learned a lot about the history of China in general. Glad I did the private tour as I felt I was able to personalise things for me and ask tons of questions.

  Prashanna_VSeptember 2026via Viator

• 5Super Forbidden City experience

  Great experience. Bill was very knowledgeable and had lots of great information. Best way to see the more crowded attractions in Beijing.

  johang562September 2026via Tripadvisor

Know before you go

How it compares in Beijing

• Its from-price is 47% below the median of the 521 city tours we list in Beijing.
• It is shorter than most of them.
• By number of reviews it ranks 7 of 521.
• The operator lists free cancellation on it.

About Beijing

Beijing, China's capital for centuries, holds imperial palaces, sacred temples and stretches of the Great Wall within reach of its modern boulevards.

At the city's heart, the Forbidden City spreads behind vermilion walls, a labyrinth of halls and courtyards that housed the emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties. Tiananmen Square lies to its south, and the hill of Jingshan Park to its north gives the finest view over its golden roofs. The Temple of Heaven, set in a park where locals practise tai chi and dance, is a masterpiece of imperial design.

Top-ranked sights in Beijing: Mutianyu Great Wall, Forbidden City (Palace Museum), Tiananmen Square (Tiananmen Guangchang).

See all 3624 experiences in Beijing